Mayor Bill de Blasio. Image Credit: Benjamin Kanter/Mayoral Photo Office.

Advisory commission will conduct comprehensive review of property tax system. On May 31, 2018, Mayor De Blasio announced the formation of an advisory commission to develop recommendations to reform the City’s property tax system. The reform aims to make the property tax system simpler, clearer, and fairer, as well as ensure that there is no reduction in revenue used to fund essential City services. The property tax system has not had an in-depth review by such commission since 1993. (more…)

Current debt thresholds triggering a tax lien sale. Image Credit: City Council.

The City’s Lien Sale Program has been extended another four years with some minor modifications. A lien is a legal claim against a property for unpaid property taxes, water, sewer or other property charges. When the property owner has been delinquent for a specified period of time, the City is allowed to sell the liens to an authorized third party. The new purchaser then has the authority to collect the money that was previously owed to the City, plus other fees and interest. (more…)

Ellen Hoffman

Ellen Hoffman, a lawyer for 40 years, earned a JD from New York University School of Law in 1977 and an LLM in Taxation in 1978. She began her career in tax law at a private firm in New York City, when after 11 years, she felt the urge to do something different. Hoffman stumbled upon a posting for a tax attorney position with the New York City Department of Finance and, as Hoffman said, “the rest is history.”

(more…)

The property tax exemptions will affect seven buildings in Brooklyn Community Board 16. Image credit: Department of City Planning

Dean Atlantic HDFC received property tax exemption for seven buildings.  On August 21, 2014, the City Council voted 47-0 to approve an Article XI property tax exemption on seven buildings owned by the Dean Atlantic Housing Development Finance Corporation.  The Department of Housing Preservation and Development requested the exemption from the City Council on Dean Atlantic’s behalf.  The buildings are all in Brooklyn Community Board 16, covering the Ocean Hill and Brownsville communities.  Six of the buildings are located in an area bounded by Atlantic Avenue to the north, Dean Street to the south, Rockaway Avenue to the west and Eastern Parkway to the east.  The seventh building is located further south at the corner of Park Place and Saratoga Avenue.  The buildings are either  two-or three-stories for a total of twelve residential units, with five of the buildings featuring a commercial space on the ground floor.  The residences are two- and three-bedroom units.

(more…)

Image Credit: William Alatriste

Intro 30-A gives HPD liens a stronger position. On August 14, 2019, City Council passed Intro 30-A providing that the City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development’s (“HPD”) orders to vacate the premises, and the subsequent costs to relocate the displaced tenant would now be considered high status tax liens on the property. The law is intended to discourage the negligence of building owners and give HPD an ability to recover relocation expenses of those tenants that were forced to vacate. These liens will have a first position over all other liens and encumbrances on the building and lot except for other tax liens and assessments.

(more…)